Annie Perry is born beside the coal-muddied canals of the Black Country at the height of the industrial revolution. When her father dies, her Romi family can no longer afford to keep her, and at nine years old she is sold for six guineas to the famous and feared bare-knuckle boxer Bill Perry, the Tipton Slasher.Bill is starting to lose his strength but insists he has one last fight in him. In fear for his life, Annie steps into the ring, fists raised in his defence. From that